More than 200 hospitality practitioners, representatives from cultural and tourism departments, and tea culture experts and scholars from both the mainland and Taiwan gathered in Wuyishan, Fujian Province, recently to explore new opportunities for developing tea-themed accommodations.
On April 17, the first national tea-themed accommodation development conference, themed "Stay in Wuyi, tea in China," was held in Wuyishan City, along with cross-Strait exchange activities focused on tea-themed accommodations in Fujian.
As Wuyishan is known as the birthplace of oolong and black tea, local authorities are integrating tea culture into rural development.
"First, we focus on cultural empowerment by incorporating intangible cultural heritage, such as Wuyi tea ceremonies and tea arts, into the accommodation experience. Second, we enhance industry collaboration to achieve an integrated development of accommodation, tea garden and creative industry. Third, we emphasize ecological features to promote a green and low-carbon tea tourism lifestyle," said Gan Shudan, head of the homestay branch of the Nanping City Tourism Association.
During the conference, a report on national tea accommodation industry development was released, which highlights the current status and future trends of the tea accommodation industry.
The first 17 certified Wuyi tea accommodation brands and the cross-Strait tea accommodation brands were announced at the event, aiming to promote cooperative development of the tea accommodation industry across the Strait.
"It's not a complete revolution, instead, it's an innovative leap built on the existing development of the homestay business. We want to present a fresh new concept of homestay, including its essence and scope," said Ning Jun, head of the homestay branch of the Fujian Provincial Tourism Association.
Cross-Strait representatives discuss tea-themed accommodation development
